The recently announced cabinet reshuffle by President Bola Tinubu saw the appointment of Bianca Ojukwu as the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs. This development has generated discussions, with many seeing it as a calculated attempt to mend the longstanding fissures that have existed between Nigeria and the Southeast.
Katchi Ononuju, a political analyst, sees this appointment as a well thought out gesture to unity. He says his thoughts on the matter are that something more needs to be done than just changing the faces in government for healing to take place, things like concrete performances of results expected in regional demands.
The big question now is whether Bianca’s position would sway the government to change its position on the detained IPOB leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. While her position avails her an opportunity for foreign affairs matters, experts, including Kanu’s lawyer Aloy Ejimakor, say she can use that position to help bring to the fore how detention affects Nigeria’s international image.
Lawyer Madubuachi Idam emphasized that true unity, from the part of the government, must be carried out by real change, and not merely a re-shuffling of titles. Nigerians will be looking to see whether Tinubu’s administration will put concrete steps forward in the direction of inclusive progress across all regions.
In other words, Bianca’s appointment is promising, but it requires action if it is to be made real.
